Democratic Erosion University Course Student Blog

Students enrolled in our course are encouraged to write for the course blog, and to read and comment on posts from students at other participating universities. The blog offers students the opportunity to analyze current events through the lens of the theory and case studies they engage with through the course.

These blogs reflect the views of the student authors, and not those of the Democratic Erosion Consortium.

The Election That May Save Hungary’s Democracy

"Today we won because the Hungarian people didn't ask what their country could do for them, but what they could do for their country," -Péter Magyar Hungary just held its most consequential election in a generation, bringing an end to Viktor Orbán’s sixteen year reign...

Misinformation: The Role it Plays in the Persistence of the 2020 Election

The stability of democracy does not only rely on the security of elections but on the people’s trust of their legitimacy, and the aftermath of the 2020 United States presidential election shows how misinformation, elite influence, and repetition can erode that trust even when systems run properly.

Syria’s “transition” Is Creating a New Authoritarianism-Not Democracy.

Syria is often referred to as a country in transition. That is deceiving A transition implies progress toward something better—usually democracy. However, Syria's present political trajectory points in a completely different direction. My point is that Syria's...

Israel’s Nation-State Law and the Fight Over Belonging

Apr 20, 2026 | Suffolk University

Israel’s Nation-State Law and the Fight Over Belonging Every democracy is based on a single premise: equality. That is why Israel’s 2018 Nation-State Law matters. In July...

Can a Democracy Die With 90% Approval?

Apr 20, 2026 | George Mason University

Every morning, we stop by a cafe and grab an iced Americano. We pay in a hurry, walk away in a hurry, and rarely stop to think about where that coffee came from or how it...

Why Democracy Declined in Turkey: The Role of Polarization

Apr 20, 2026 | George Mason University

Hook In the early 2000s, Turkey looked like a promising case of democracy. Many people believed it could become a stable liberal democracy, even in a Muslim-majority country. However, today, Turkey...

A Democracy in Costume

Apr 20, 2026 | American University, Universities

What do you do when your own country tries to fool you? If elections are the heart of democracy, then Venezuela should be heartless. It still holds elections. People still line up to vote....

The Zambian Plot Twist: Citizens who beat dictatorship in the mask of law

Apr 20, 2026 | George Mason University

Forget the tanks! In the 21st century, the most dangerous weapon against democracy isn’t a gun. It’s a law. In a democracy, a "coup" is not the only dangerous thing when armed soldiers show up one...

Beginning of ‘Democratic Erosion’ in El Salvador

Apr 20, 2026 | American University, George Mason University, Universities

Sungeun Choi “The coolest dictator in the world.” This is how El Salvador’s President, Nayib Bokele, describes himself on social media. It might sound like a joke, but it shows a serious problem in...

Is Italy Undermining European Democracy?

Apr 20, 2026 | Suffolk University

Italy is no stranger to political upheaval. But today, many scholars and democratic organizations are asking the question: is Italy experiencing democratic backsliding? Under Prime Minister Giorgia...

Living in Fear: How Cartels Erode Democracy in Mexico

Apr 20, 2026 | George Mason University

Do the social problems that we commonly experience in our daily lives really affect a country’s democracy, policies, and overall political system? The answer is yes. In now days in our society,...

How elites quietly destroyed democracy in Venezuela

Apr 20, 2026 | George Mason University, Universities

Democracies do not usually collapse in some dramatic moments. There is no single night where everything suddenly falls. Most of time, they fade slowly and almost silently until the day they are not...

Democratic Erosion in Serbia and the Role of China’s Belt and Road Initiative

Apr 20, 2026 | George Mason University

The Novi Sad Canopy Collapse and Vučić’s response Can authoritarianism be spread transnationally, and if so, how does it affect democratic regimes in an era of...

The Stealthy Decay: Türkiye’s Democratic Erosion

Apr 19, 2026 | George Mason University

For much of the early twenty-first century, Türkiye was often considered a successful example of democratic consolidation in a Muslim-majority country. Political scientists such as Guillermo...